Two Knights
by Asuka Kureru
Summary: DISCONTINUED. 1x2,1x2xR PostEW, yaoi and het. Relena was willing to set aside her crush on Heero, knowing he's with Duo. But Duo has other ideas...
1. Default Chapter

**Two Knights**

Author: Asuka Kureru

**Warnings/category**: Post-Endless Waltz, romance, mild angst, lots of sap, get-together.

**Pairing**: 1x2 going on to **1x2xR **(yes, that **IS **Heero **and** Duo **and** Relena. OMG bisexual people. Deal with it.)

So far the rating is PG-13, but it will be upgraded to R eventually. They're gonna stay platonic for a while before that happens, though.

Written for Zania, and because I wanted to try this pairing for ages.

oOoOoOoOo

"He loves you, you know," he told her as they watched the sun set over the beach, sitting against the concrete wall that went up to the promenade.

On the sand, his bare feet playing tag with the waves crashing on the shore, Heero was running after his dog, a sleek, black mix of god only knew how many big dogs. The mutt was dancing around his master, jumping in his path then whirling away, and sometimes Heero danced back, feinting a pounce. Neither of them made much noise, not as you could have expected from a young man and his dog playing, but then they were an odd pair at all times.

So alike, both of them strays who had never played one day in their lives before being taken in. Seeing them enjoying themselves was to be cherished.

For a second, Relena resented Duo for taking her away from her bittersweet contemplation.

"Yes, I know," she answered, not looking at the longhaired man. And she did. She knew that Heero loved her. Just not like she wanted him to, and knowing that Heero would give his life for hers in a heartbeat did nothing to soothe the pain she felt at not being for anything in freeing the troubled young man she had met several years ago, on this very beach. The one who had helped Heero to hatch out of his training and self-reclusion by feeding him his unconditional love was sitting beside her.

And it was sweet to know that Heero trusted her enough to play where she could see, to let her know that she had been right, that she hadn't been stupid or delusional like so many had told her to see this lonely, love-starved child in that killer's eyes, but the regret... the selfish regret that she hadn't done anything to heal the man she ached for, was always looming somewhere in her soul, nipping at her heels, chasing her.

With that regret should have come jealousy and resentment, but she had killed those feelings fast enough, despising herself for even contemplating it. How could she be jealous of Duo Maxwell, when he had saved her life so many times, when he had been the first to recognize and encourage those feelings she had for the mysterious young man who had irrupted in her life, when he had always cheered her up and offered her his support, however clumsily at times? When so many times he had plotted to give her occasions to approach Heero, had advised her on how to reach him? How could she resent him, when he was, himself, in such a need for love? How could she fault him for having gotten that love he so craved?

It wasn't his fault that Heero had chosen to love him. While he had not refused to let the bond between Heero and himself grow, he had also never tried to prevent Relena from nurturing her own bond to the other pilot, had even lent a hand many times. The young woman thought that it was probably in part because he didn't believe himself worthy of a chance, but mostly it was because that was the kind of individual Duo was. Fair, honorable, thoughtful, under his carefree, almost careless behavior. She wasn't surprised that they had gotten together. Heero seemed to be pulled toward her, but you had to be blind not to see the ties that moored him to Duo.

Still, even though Duo and her had never talked openly about their feelings, they both knew. And it wasn't really nice to twist the knife in the wound!

He chuckled softly, as if feeling her sudden annoyance. She frowned at him.

"When I say that he loves you, I mean that... He _loves _you, Relena."

She opened her mouth to tell him that she had understood the first time and could he please stop sticking his foot into her broken heart, when she realized that she hadn't understood. Because it was the same word, but she didn't get what the tone behind was conveying.

He was watching her, with his weird dark blue eyes that sometimes seemed tinted with purple, and she saw him smile at her, a smile that somehow felt like that of a teacher to a student. She wondered if he and Heero hadn't been right to say that the stress of her job was getting to her; she actually wanted to scratch that smug look off his face.

She was reaching for one of the long locks of hair that had gotten free from his ponytail when he looked over her shoulder and smiled a whole another smile, one of those smiles you swear you can see glow. It was soft and tender and loving, and she didn't have to turn to know that Heero was coming their way.

"Hey... Is Kuro finished with his run?" Duo asked, still smiling, but the smile turning into a gently mocking smirk. Because of course Heero had been running and playing as much for his own sake as for his dog's.

Heero didn't dignify that with an answer, turning to Relena instead. She smiled back when his eyes softened for her, wondering how she had never really thought anything of that habit he had. Duo was smirking at her over Heero's shoulder, knowing that she had noticed, that his comment had made her notice that what she had interpreted as simple caring... maybe wasn't. And now, she would never get that silly idea out of her head before she solved that mystery.

She knew that no one else other than Heero's own lover would ever have managed to make her accept that faint possibility ; she had been forbidding herself hope for so long. But she trusted Duo that much, at least... didn't she?

They went to the steep stairs, Duo bouncing up first, the dog after him, and Heero stepped aside to let her climb before him politely. She chuckled, remembering the last time she had seen Heero on those steps. He had jumped up, effortlessly kicking the medics out of the way with those long legs of his, and she had felt as if after months of boredom and bleakness, she was suddenly in the middle of a karate flick. Later on, before she had truly grasped the seriousness of the situation, she had leaned toward espionage, maybe a sort of teenage James Bond movie. But the fact was --she had felt alive.

Okay, she had also felt slightly melodramatic; she winced, remembering that "introducing herself to thin air" moment. She was glad the medics had been more preoccupied with taking care of each other. Her adolescent self would never have lived it down. Maybe she had been a drama queen, but she had been a teenager. Wasn't it supposed to be a requirement?

She paused once on the road, deep in thought. Was it really only seven years ago that her life had taken a sharp turn into that stuff movies are made of?

"Rel?"

She started. Duo was chuckling.

"So, we saw the place where you met Heero. Where to now?"

"I don't know... That military base? I've heard that it's disaffected now, I'm sure we could go in... Legally I mean," she added, mock-glaring at Duo. He was a little too fond of his lock picks.

Duo laughed, amused. "Nah, s'okay. Nothing to do there except watch the water and try to find which pontoon we were playing on, and say boring things like 'who would have thought I'd get to shag the weird boy who tried to kill that pretty girl'. Unless Heero wants to?"

Heero shook his head but the two longhaired ones knew that he'd indulge them if they chose to go anyway. He had already stated his inability to see why visiting those places again would be of any kind of relevance. But at least when Relena was taking walks with them, she wasn't in her office or in meetings, and that was what was important to him.

"Hey Relena, you know what's the best part?" Duo asked, his eyes twinkling merrily. "When I went to save you, I really was thinking that you were pretty cute, and that I had never seen a weirdo like Spandex-boy."

The young woman burst out laughing, despite the bittersweet aftertaste of that irony. She had thrown herself in the line of fire to protect her Heero from the weird guy in black, and in the end, they had gotten together. But still, he was right, it was pretty ironic. They weren't in a movie finally, or she would have ended up with either her cute and chivalrous savior or the dark and mysterious stranger. Her white knight and her dark knight... and there was no place for the princess with either of them.

"Woolgathering again, princess?"

She blinked at hearing the nickname that ran so close to her own thoughts, and for a second imagined that she would turn around to find them decked out in armor, standing proud and waiting. The fantasy went back into hiding when she saw Duo, though. His ratty old T-shirt flapping in the breeze, he was looking at her with an air of false pity, in a typical 'she seemed such a normal girl' expression.

"OW!"

"Are you coming, Heero?" she asked sweetly, her hand still closed in a tight fist around Duo's ponytail. She felt warm again when Heero's eyes lit up. She had never needed explaining to know that it was the way he smiled, when his smiles were the sincerest.

"Heero, save me!" Duo wailed dramatically. His lover only snorted at him.

"I'm not taking sides, especially when you were asking for it."

"So letting her manhandle me is not taking sides?" Duo asked, outraged.

"Okay, then I'm taking a side," Heero deadpanned. "Hers. Better?"

"More honest, at least," grumbled Duo, still bent on the side to try not to pull on his hair, but Heero had stopped paying attention to him to watch his dog, who was slowly climbing a rock to sniff at a seagull. He called him back before the dog could get his nose stabbed by the enormous bird and turned back to Duo and Relena.

"It's almost noon. We should go back to the Darlian estate."

Nodding, she let Duo go and they went.


	2. chapter 2

**Two Knights**

Chapter 2

The meal was kept simple. Relena's mother was visiting a friend and so, it was just the three of them. The conversation was fairly quiet and rather sporadic, seeing as they had walked a lot this morning, and the sea wind had a way of making you hungry. It was so restful, so very different from the hurried lunch-conferences she took with her board of advisors and secretaries or the sandwiches she grabbed here and there in the evening before going to bed at an ungodly hour of the night. She couldn't say she minded.

Maybe they had been right to force her to rest, even though when they had irrupted in her office to drag her off she had done everything except thank them.

She put her fork down, let her hands rest on her lap, demurely, and opened her mouth to thank them.

"Not hungry anymore, Relena?" Heero asked in his quiet voice. She looked up and met his eyes; he looked faintly worried.

"Young ladies don't wolf down as much food as guys like me, Heero," Duo laughed. "Oh well. Only means there's more for me." And he reached out to grab her plate.

"Hey!" she protested, slapping his hand away. "I didn't say that I wasn't hungry anymore!"

Duo stared at her, cradling his hand, and she froze, realizing what she had done.

"... oh... I'm sorry, I didn't mean--"

"It's about the only way to keep him away from your food, Relena," Heero reassured her, smirking just a tiny bit.

"My, the missus has TEETH."

Suddenly, she was not feeling like being meek and polite, and she bared them for him, mock-threatening. Heero's eyes widened in surprise and for a second she was afraid that she'd broken his image of her. But then she decided that if he saw her as nothing else than nice, prim and proper, then he needed a reality check and fast. Perhaps she loved him, but she wouldn't hide who she was from him just to make sure that he'd like her better.

Despite her brave thoughts, she was still extremely relieved when his eyes lightened with amusement and he arched a mocking eyebrow.

"I don't want your food," he assured her coolly, still smirking just a tiny bit.

"Good because I'll defend it... HEY!!!"

Duo had used the moment during which they stared at each other to poke his fork at the content of her plate. The young woman grabbed his hand and bit his fingers.

"Fork off! Hands off! My food." And on those words, she speared a bite from her plate and chewed on it viciously. She didn't know why, but she felt good, energized. Aggressive, actually. It surprised her that feeling aggressive could be a good feeling; she had always associated it with battles and wars and blood, maybe some political meetings, and all sorts of unpleasant stuff.

Duo's hearty guffaws were expected, but not Heero's quiet snickers. She felt an irrepressible smile rise to her lips. Yes, she was definitely glad for the vacation, finally.

* * *

She had never known that there was a hammock in her gardens.

It was swaying gently in the breeze, between two trees, the white net of ropes covered in part with a sea green cloth that was freckled with patches of sun and the shadows of leaves. It looked inviting, restful.

"Dibs!"

... and occupied.

Heero rolled his eyes. "Relena is the one supposed to get rest, you lazy ass."

"I'm just testing it for her. We wouldn't want to discover that it was badly tied when the knots give, right?" Duo answered, batting his eyelashes innocently as he made himself comfortable. "See, if it resists to my weight for a few hours, then it means that she'll be safe."

"If it doesn't resist your weight, the only thing it will mean is that you should seriously try eating less," Relena commented casually, giving him a dazzling smile. There were so many sailor knots on the ropes that she doubted anything short of a beam weapon could get it untied.

"Someone is still sulking about being helped with her diet..."

"Diet? Are you implying that I am fat, Duo Maxwell?" she shot back, hands on her hips.

He gave her a lazy smile and pushed his sunglasses down to give her a once-over.

"Don't worry, babe. You're only fat in the right places."

Somehow, Heero's glass of water slid a little out of his hand, and in the process of catching it again, it just happened that most of the water spilled out.

"... thank you, love, I was getting too warm," Duo commented, wiping water off his sunglasses calmly.

"My pleasure," he replied stiffly, even though his eyes were gleaming. "I wouldn't want you to overheat your brain."

Relena laughed, unable to help it. Duo looked like he was keeping from pouting by sheer force of will, and Heero had a smug look on his face she had rarely gotten to see before.

"Okay, okay. I will leave to Mr. Iceman the pleasure of warming himself up with thoughts of our princess' womanly curves."

Relena would have given him an offended tongue-lashing if the blush on Heero's cheeks hadn't sidetracked her. And then she was blushing too, and it was too late for the "DUO!!" she'd had in mind.

Heero looked up at her from behind his bangs, cautiously. He froze when he saw her watching him, and they both blushed more and looked away. Relena's stomach was doing flip-flops.

On the slowly swinging hammock, Duo was humming a little song, eyes closed, a satisfied look on his face.

She sat down on the garden chair, mind reeling. Why was Heero so embarrassed? She knew he didn't let most dirty jokes get to him, especially not when they were from Duo. Was it because he really liked her, as Duo had told her, or just because he liked her except not that way and was afraid that she would misinterpret Duo's unsubtle hints?

And why was Duo teasing them so much, dammit?

Heero sat down at the garden table, his fingers following the forged iron patterns at the center. His dog padded to him, sitting down at his side quietly, and the man started to rub his ears gently, whispering to him in Japanese. Relena had a feeling he was paying him so much attention so as not to have to look up. The way he patted his head was cautious, though, as if a too hard touch could hurt him, and the dog only barely wagged his tail, as if shy. She felt her chest tighten.

"... So... Where did you find that dog anyway?" she asked, desperate for a subject of conversation. The dog definitely had Doberman in him, maybe some Labrador for the fur. He was too old to have been a puppy the last time she'd seen Heero, and the young man didn't have any dog then.

"In our backyard."

"... In your backyard."

She waited for more of the story patiently, reaching toward the dog and letting him smell her hand. Though he politely sniffed her palm, he looked dubious, so she didn't insist and let her hand drop at her side. She wondered if he had been beaten; he was so painfully wary.

Finally Heero looked up briefly and shared another tidbit of information. "He was regularly knocking over our garbage can."

"And so you adopted him," she continued, amused. Heero looked faintly embarrassed, so she generously decided to switch the line of questioning. "Where did you find his name? Kuro, was it?"

Duo chuckled from the hammock and straightened up, squirming in the net to get into a more comfortable position.

"It was what Heero called him all the time, in between two fits of grumbling. 'Kono kuro inu'," the American man explained in a rough approximation of Heero's annoyed growling. "And then he'd get out to chase him off, and come back all proud of his brave deed, but somehow before lights out, our leftovers would end up in the backyard. I have no clue how," he added, giving his lover an amused look.

Heero was giving his whole attention to a bit of rust into the iron patterns of the table.

"...Finally he stopped pretending to think it a nuisance and decided to tame it... though to me, it looks more like they tamed each other," Duo finished, his tone a mix of amusement and fondness.

Relena chuckled. She could imagine it. "But what does kono... well, his name mean?"

"That black dog," Heero said, deadpan.

"... you called your dog 'that black dog'?" she asked, incredulous.

"Yep," Duo quipped. "Original, ne?"

She couldn't help it and began to laugh. It was such a Heero thing to do.

"Don't laugh," Heero growled at them both. Relena bit her lip and tried to formulate an apology, but Heero was ignoring her and glaring at Duo, visibly miffed. "Weren't you supposed to be asleep?"

Duo rolled his eyes, smiling. "... Yes, yes, I'm asleep. I'm just talking in my sleep. You know it happens at any other time. I just can't stop talking, when I read, when I watch the TV, when I eat..."

"... Duoooo..."

"I'm asleep. See?"

Heero sighed, and then smiled--just a bit. He didn't look angry any longer. Relena released a breath she wasn't aware she'd been holding back.

"I'm sorry," she offered quietly anyway.

He shrugged. The matter was closed.

* * *

A bird trilled under the trees, and awakened her from her daydreaming. She wondered how long it had been since Duo had excused himself to work on his car, and glanced sideways at Heero. He was dozing off, Kuro asleep at his feet. Relena watched him for a few seconds, and then sighed, staring out at the gardens, and impulsively decided that she would take a walk in the shade. To her surprise, when she got up Heero followed, Kuro immediately at his heel.

The stone-paved path between the flower bushes was cool, relaxing. The quiet company more so.

"... I had a pet bunny when I was younger," she mused softly, not inviting an answer, just sharing. "He was so cute, white with black spots, and pretty smart for a bunny. He didn't scare easily, and he could demand cuddles rather forcefully. If Mother had let me, I would have brought him everywhere, but I doubt the people inviting us would have enjoyed having him pee on their China rugs and munch on their Louis XVI furniture."

She chuckled quietly, and managed not to beam when she caught a glimpse of an answering smile on Heero's lips. She would have scared it back into hiding.

"I would have liked a cat better, but Father was allergic."

"Why don't you get one now?" he asked softly, stopping to watch her.

She sighed with regret, her hand caressing the soft petals of an iris absently. "... I wouldn't have the time for a cat. I already have to babysit so many people at work. And I'm already gone most of the day, it wouldn't be my cat if it was just living in my house and Pargan had to feed it for me. If I can't care for it myself, then I shouldn't have one."

Heero patted the flank of his dog gently, giving it implicit permission to explore, then looked up at Relena. "No one should be too busy for a pet. Or to see their friends," he berated her, in a tone that was still as mild as it had been around Duo.

She gave him a properly chastised look. Ideally, all jobs should leave people with at least some time to build a life around them, but hers was devouring everything else.

"No one should, but..."

"Your friends can understand that you're busy, but a pet couldn't," Heero continued, interrupting her. His voice was still soft enough not to disturb the quiet of the garden, but a lot more serious. "If you had a cat, you would TAKE that time."

"Maybe," she admitted slowly as she picked a flower to go with the iris. "But..."

Heero met her eyes frankly. She almost shivered as she caught a glimpse of his steel will, and then she felt warm, moved. He was determined to give her that little bit of happiness, and probably to provide her with a good reason to put some limit on the time she spent working too. He wanted to care for her, when she wouldn't.

"Oh, fine," she gave in with a teasing smile. "But you and Kuro have to come and help me to choose, because I don't want a cat that won't get along with him." Or you, she added silently. Then they could share her cat-time.

He blinked at her, visibly surprised, and then turned away, hiding his response to the tacit promise. Had she gone too far? Maybe he was fine with caring for her from afar, and a standing invitation to join her every evening was a lot more invasive than what he wanted...

A jonquil was waving under her nose. She blinked, looked up the hand holding it.

Heero was watching her, still as serious as ever.

"For your bouquet," he said.

Invitation accepted.


	3. chapter 3

Two Knights

Chapter 3

* * *

Duo was bent over the hood of his car when they entered the garage, elbows-deep in its entrails. He was so intensely concentrated on whatever it was he was doing that he didn't turn until Kuro padded to him, whuffing quietly.

"Are you going to be busy much longer?" Heero asked.

Duo blinked at him quizzically as he wiped his hands clean on a rag. Well, clean was a relative term, Relena supposed. It was hard to understand what kind of interest anyone could have in such a dirtying occupation. She made a note to ask him later.

"Why d'you ask?"

"We're about to head into town. Wondered if you wanted to come."

"We are?" Relena replied, arching an eyebrow. When Heero had led her out of the house in search for his lover, he hadn't bothered explaining why.

Duo snickered briefly at her expression of mild, polite surprise. "Heh. Mission again?"

Heero nodded. "Relena needs a cat. Are you coming or not?"

She should have guessed, really. She rolled her eyes at Heero. "Right now? You know it can wait..."

"Why wait? We don't have anything special to do. And if you're anything like Duo, you'll just find reasons to put it off just a few days longer and in the end you won't get one at all."

"Wait a second. She _needs_ a _cat_?" Duo was blinking, as if he had missed an episode of a particularly complicated soap opera.

"Yes, she does."

"She happens to be right here, thank you very much," Relena replied, snorting in an unladylike way. "Heero got it into his head that if I had a pet, I would take more time for myself to take care of it."

"Well, the theory is sound, at least," Duo commented as he washed his hands at the faucet in the corner. "I assume you do want a pet?"

She fidgeted, embarrassed. "Well... yes. I mean, I wouldn't mind..."

Duo straightened up and nodded. "Okay, I'm coming."

Relena caught herself pouting. They were so annoying, deciding things for her like that... but Heero was right, if they didn't go now she would probably always tell herself to go later and end up not going at all.

"I'll call Pargan," she said with a sigh, conceding.

"No offence, princess, but I am NOT riding in that pink monstrosity."

She had not planned on taking the limo, really; Pargan was getting too old to drive safely and she wasn't good with big cars. But it was always interesting to argue with Duo. Not in the same way that it was interesting to argue with Dorothy at all, but... funnier. Sharpening her wits in a different manner.

"And why don't you want to ride in my limousine?" she asked, her tone overly patient. Most of the old diplomats she met never caught the subtle mockery in the overly sugary tones, but Duo did, because he huffed as if she had mortally offended him.

"It's PINK."

"And what is the matter with that? It's only the color of the coat of paint, Duo. It doesn't make the motor break down more often or the tires go flat at random intervals. Just because it happens to be pink doesn't make it a bad car. So long as the car works, does it matter what color it is?" she asked reasonably.

"Yes."

She gave Heero a look, hoping for his support, but he was grimacing too. "Logically speaking, Relena is right, Duo..."

"You wanna drive a pink car?"

"... I didn't say that."

Duo looked at her, crossing his arms over his chest decisively. "There."

She sighed, then laughed, because their obvious reaction to the color of her car was refreshingly childish and illogical. She was glad that Duo had taught Heero that sometimes it was okay to go with their feelings and moods and not the most practical solution. Maybe if they hung around long enough, she would gain back that ability.

* * *

They parked the nondescript little car they had ended up using and walked to the pet shop Heero had located a few days ago. Relena had considered asking him why he had bothered to notice one pet shop, but had then realized during his skillful navigation of the car through the numerous one-way streets that he had practically the whole town memorized in his almost eidetic memory. Then she had been reminded of all the times he walked in a room and immediately knew where everything was supposed to be.

For a moment she wondered how it was to be able to recall so well every little detail you came across --it must be greatly useful to have such a special ability -- but then she winced; Heero had lived through some pretty awful things. It must have been harder for him than for most people to let time dull the memories to the point they no longer actively bothered him. She wondered if the ability was natural or if it had been trained into him. Maybe eventually she would get an occasion to ask.

As they arrived to the door, Heero called Kuro to him to leash and muzzle him. The black dog looked at him reproachfully, but obediently stayed at heel. Duo pushed the door open and was immediately greeted by a smiling young woman who -- if Relena's instincts were right-- was checking him out. Hm. Maybe they should have given him some time to get into something other than baggy pants that threatened to fall off his hips and a red tanktop that had been at the right size when he'd been fifteen. She wondered if Heero had noticed the clerk's reaction and if he ever felt jealous, and glanced back at him to check.

As usual, his expression was unreadable, but she detected vague amusement. It changed into annoyance when the clerk hurried to slip out from behind the cash desk.

"I'm sorry, sir, but you can't bring your dog inside."

Duo and Heero exchanged a look and Duo moved to intercept her, braid swaying behind him. "Actually... We were hoping we would be able to choose a pet that would get along with him. Kuro's a sweet dog, really, but very shy. We thought it would be good to find a pet that wouldn't traumatize him."

The woman's resolve wavered a little, faced with Duo's honest, hopeful smile; Kuro cooperated by hiding behind Heero's legs cutely even as he stretched his neck to sniff at what was inside the pet shop.

"Well... It's against regulations..."

"He's muzzled, and I can keep him on a short leash," Heero commented neutrally. "But if that's too much of a bother, I can wait outside."

Duo sighed and rolled his eyes discretely at Heero, as if berating him for conceding so quickly. "Relena, you could start looking at the kittens," he commented, probably to get her out of the way while he charmed the woman into obedience.

She nodded and stepped away, smiling politely at the clerk. The woman looked at her, then gaped in surprise, having apparently recognized her. Well, maybe that would make things easier, Relena thought, smothering her guilty conscience at using her influence to get around rules.

"Oh-- uhm. That is... If you make sure he's held tight at all times, then I guess... Just this once..."

Yep, it did. Relena gave her a grateful smile.

"Thank you," Heero commented, still as neutral, and walked in slowly. Kuro sniffed around cautiously, but didn't even try to step away from Heero, obviously uneasy in such an environment. A lone puppy woke up and yipped at Kuro excitedly. Kuro waved his tail shyly in response, and followed Heero toward where Relena and Duo were leaning over the kittens' pens.

"Oh, how could I ever choose?" she complained halfheartedly. They were all so cute. Some were common cats, being of all the possible colors and then some, but some were obviously from more expensive breeds.

"This one looks dignified. Bet she'd look right proper on your lap as you give an interview, princess," Duo teased as he pointed at a Persian kitten.

Relena made a face. The little animal reminded her of a senator she knew, with a face perpetually like he'd smelled something unpleasant, and long, graying hair on the sides of the head... which always made his baldness at the top more apparent. "No offense to the kitten, but no thanks."

"Aww, but she looks so ... noble..."

"I think the word you want is snob," Heero commented quietly as he leaned between them to glance at the squirming mass of kittens. "Getting her fur to stay clean and untangled will probably take hours every day anyway."

Relena nodded, grateful for the escape Heero had provided her. She was mostly sure that Duo had been teasing her, but she still didn't want to offend.

Duo pointed to a sleeping black kitten, but she shook her head before he could say anything.

"Mother is a bit superstitious like that," she apologized before he could tease her about not liking his favorite color. "She wouldn't say anything, but she would be a bit uneasy."

The clerk was hovering behind them, but she didn't interrupt them, for which Relena was grateful. There were so many cats in here, she couldn't choose.

"Okay, so no black cat, no Persian cat..."

"You can't take one too young either," Heero mused. "It wouldn't be properly socialized."

Duo let his fingers trail in the middle of a pile of cream-colored kittens, tickling an ear here and there. His hand was immediately pounced on and then enthusiastically chewed up. Relena laughed.

"Hey! So it makes you laugh?" Duo mock-growled, pulling one kitten out of the heap and dumping it in her arms. "Here, let's see how you like being attacked by that hellbeast in training."

Of course, cats were annoying creatures and the kitten was perfectly happy with batting at her hair and butting its head against her chin. She started to pet it, amused. It was purring like a motor already.

"This one looks friendly. What do you think, Heero?" she commented as he leaned over her shoulder to get a closer look.

The kitten shot out of her arms to attack Heero's bangs. Sadly, they were, like always, in front of Heero's nose, so naturally when he felt tiny claws on his face, the Japanese man stepped back.

With the kitten still trying to chomp on his bangs.

Five seconds later, Relena and Heero had managed to thoroughly get in each other's way trying to grab the kitten before it fell. Meanwhile, the kitten was hanging on Kuro's back by the tip of its tiny claws. Duo was guffawing loudly.

Kuro gave the creamy kitten fighting to climb on his back a thoroughly bewildered look, but was apparently too stunned to move, which allowed the clerk to pick the kitten up. Giving the woman an apologetic look, Relena reached out to hold it again, properly this time.

"I'm sorry, I didn't expect it to do that."

"It's okay, Minist-- uhm, miss."

Relena grinned at her, grateful for her tact. "Thank you --" quick glance at her tag-- "Sandra. Is there a better way to hold a kitten?"

She let the nervous woman show her how to place her arms, how best to hold the little beast. It purred again, already forgetting its acrobatic adventures.

"This is a Siamese cat," the clerk commented.

"I thought they had boots and a mask," Duo replied, puzzled, as he played with a small creamy paw.

"Oh-- they get it later, as they grow up. The color of their fur is actually heat-sensitive, so the colder parts of their bodies, that is their paws, tail and face, darken faster. It's quite fascinating," she added with a nervous -- and mildly flirtatious -- smile at Duo.

"Quite," he agreed, smiling back and pretending not to feel the prickle of the kitten's claws on his fingers. Behind him, Heero rolled his eyes. Relena looked down at the animal, trying not to laugh.

If Heero didn't look that annoyed that his lover was an incorrigible flirt, then she didn't need to get annoyed on his behalf. It was good. Duo was actually pretty amusing when he tried to be smooth, and so far his behavior had been entirely harmless.

"These have no pedigree, so you won't be able to breed them or enter them into most contest..."

Relena shook her head. "That's not important. I wasn't planning to."

The clerk blinked at her, as if she had trouble comprehending that someone of such high standing could not prefer something that came with a little "authenticity guaranteed" tag. Luckily another customer came in and the clerk moved away to greet him. Relena turned back to Heero and Duo.

"What do you think?"

"I hear they're clingy as far as cats go," Duo commented, suckling a drop of blood off the tip of his clawed finger.

"Friendlier than most cats. That's good," Heero replied, shooting him a dirty look.

"And I bet she'll look so pretty with her little boots," Relena concluded, nuzzling the purring beast. "Now the Kuro test."

She dumped the kitten in Heero's arms; he managed to hold it, but looked mightily uncomfortable, as if scared of breaking the tiny animal. Awkwardly, the man knelt, letting his dog sniff his burden. The kitten meowed a little and pawed at Kuro's nose, but didn't scratch. Kuro gave it a shy lick, as if he wasn't sure if he was supposed to welcome the thing or eat it.

"That's as good a greeting as we're going to get," Heero commented as he got up to give the little animal to Relena again. She tried not to appear to notice how very relieved he seemed to be to get rid of the small, frail creature. It was so adorable, and a little sad too.

"Then I guess we're taking this one home. Do you want to come home, babycat?" she whispered to the kitten. It looked up at her, meowing, and she decided that it had to mean yes.

"Let's go find the clerk," Duo commented with a chuckle.

Relena was aware that Heero was watching her rubbing her cheek against the kitten's back, but it was just too soft and fluffy to stop cuddling. She wondered if he found her silly for going gaga over an animal, then decided that even if he did, she didn't care.

Heero reached out, freeing one of her locks from the cat's teeth, and tucked it back behind her ear gently.

"Let's get its gear," he commented softly. "It's going to need a name. Do you have ideas?"

Heart still jumping in her chest from his unexpected gesture, she followed him to the cash desk.


	4. chapter 4

**Two Knights**

Chapter 4

Notes: Shorter chapter, because I didn't know how else to cut it. Thanks to JoIsBishMyoga for the ultra-quick beta!

--------------------------------

Late evening after dinner she left her guests to their own devices and went to read by the fireplace, the kitten napping on her lap. The plan was to relax before bed.

For about an hour, it worked.

"Do you wish you could fuck him?" Duo asked suddenly, appearing at her elbow. She was getting used to his way of materializing out of thin air, though. She barely jumped.

"No," she answered, with the calm determination that had made her a political success. "I do not."

She felt angry with him, angry at the callous words he was throwing, insulting her and his own lover both. She looked away, staring ahead, her book abandoned on the table beside her armchair.

He was watching her intently, like a hawk, as if trying to read her eyes. She had never seen him more indecipherable.

"Do you wish you could make love with him?"

So that was it, eh? The warning off of his territory. She had grown so tired of waiting for it. "Yes," she whispered, her eyes suddenly full of hot tears, of rage and regret, of rage at Duo's surprisingly casual cruelty, and of regret for what would never be.

"Good."

And with that, he grinned.

"That wasn't exactly the reaction I had expected," she managed to answer, glad that her years as a politician had given her such good schooling as for hiding her emotions; she sounded perfectly neutral.

Duo's laughing eyes told her that he wasn't fooled a second, but that he'd act as if he was anyway, for her sake. "What, you thought I would berate you for having good taste? Hell no, princess."

Only Duo Maxwell would reason that way, she reflected, bemused.

"So... Why--"

He dropped casually in the armchair on the other side of the fireplace, throwing a long leg over the armrest. The effect could have been vulgar; it only looked relaxed. "I wouldn't want to be insulting, princess, but you're slow. Or did you already forget what I told you on the beach?"

How could she forget? she thought, bemused. "No, of course not--"

"Did you dismiss it, then?" he asked, his eyes turning hard and cold.

She gulped and shook her head. She had watched Heero's expressions. She still remembered that moment in the garden. No, she hadn't dismissed it. She didn't know how she could ever dismiss it, now.

"But why--"

"He loves you," he told her patiently, adding little finger motions to underline his meaning. "You love him. Do the math."

She took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders; Duo's delusion that this love was more than platonic was too deeply engrained for her to dispel it, and there were other questions that needed asking. "Are you playing matchmaker with your boyfriend, Maxwell?"

"Yep." The bastard was grinning.

"_Why_?!"

"Why not? He loves you."

She jumped to her feet, barely remembering to hold up the kitten; the book fell, knocked off, and lay on the floor forgotten. She caressed the back of her mewling pet gently, trying to calm herself as much as reassure the cat. "God help me Duo Maxwell, if you tell me that he isn't really in love with _you_, pacifist or not I am so going to deck you..."

"Did I say that?" he asked, amused. "I know that Heero loves me."

She paused, confused. "So why the ...heck are you telling me..."

For once he didn't laugh at her for not even being able to swear. " 'Cause it's true, princess. It's true and not telling something that important is the same as lying, and I don't lie." He eyed her. "And I think you have a right to know."

They were silent for a few seconds, listening to the cracklings of the wood in the fireplace.

"Aren't you afraid of losing his love?" she asked softly, still unable to fully understand Duo's thought process.

He shrugged and gave her his best disarming grin. "If he was meant to love you more than me... If you and him fit better than you and me... Then whatever I do, he will love you. I can only delay it, prevent him from finding a better-suited partner. That isn't love. That's selfishness."

"Meant to be... You're a romantic," she smiled, but she felt sad. "But love... can be nurtured. It can grow. Or die."

"If his love is weak enough that it can perish from being exposed to another love interest -- then maybe I don't want it."

And he had the gall to grin at her. She would have hit him for that-- except she knew he had never been so serious.

"He..." She didn't know what she wanted to say; she fell silent. Duo took it as an occasion to drive his message home.

"Loves you. Like a knight loves his princess. With an adoration and a devotion I've never seen him give to anyone else. You're not that high-profile now and there are others to take the job, but he still makes sure to keep an eye on you. And I don't know of any bodyguards that give presents to their employers--yes, I know about the bloody teddy-bear. He spent hours trying to choose one. Not that you're his employer anyway; how've you paid him so far? With no more than a smile and a few words, I'd guess."

"But..."

"What," he cut her, "you didn't think he went so far protecting you and taking care of you just 'cause you're the Only Hope For Peace or something and without you everything would crumble, do you?"

She flushed. It was exactly what she had thought.

But the way Duo said it, it sounded so self-important. She didn't really think still that the whole weight of the peace rested on her shoulders. Maybe it had at first, but now she had helped to put a solid government in place and she really didn't think that her death would be enough to destroy it utterly.

"And like a fucking bloody knight, he watches you from afar, putting his life on the line for you and sighing after you when no one's looking, never daring to reach out and try to climb your pedestal. That's so friggin infuriating."

He laughed at her gaping fish impression, shaking off the fond annoyance tinged with worry there had been in his voice.

For a few seconds, she couldn't accept Duo's words. They just didn't fit in with her vision of the world. Then it wend 'click', and suddenly, they fitted indeed. But in a way that made her cold inside.

"He loves me. Like an ideal."

He didn't see her, Relena. Maybe being the princess to his knight wasn't so good after all.

Duo snorted. "Don't push the analogy too far, Relly-baby. We're talking personality types here. I say he's a knight turned soldier because he's too fucking noble inside to act as a ruthless soldier and not get hurt later when he stops repressing, not because his feelings for you are a stereotype. Believe me, he does see the woman in you."

She snorted; it was unladylike but right now she didn't give a damn.

"You want proof?"

"Yes," she answered sternly, scowling.

He smirked deviously. "Fine. I'll give you all the proof you need."


	5. chapter 5

Two Knights, chapter 5

Pairing: 1x2, 1x2xR

Beta: Kitty Chou :cuddleloves:

* * *

The following day, Relena woke up groggy and confused. There was a lot of light in her room, and when she checked the alarm clock, she discovered that it wasn't working. She panicked, trying to remember which meetings she had missed and how to make it up, and then remembered that she was on vacation. She fell back on the bed, sighing in relief, her heart slowly calming down. And then she frowned and pushed herself up.

Somehow the plug had been pulled from the socket. And there was a tray on her bedside table. She felt torn between embarrassed gratefulness and annoyance. That thief had probably managed to sneak into her room...

... But when she reached for the folded piece of paper on the tray, it was Heero's angular writing.

_You needed the sleep. _

She had a feeling that was all the apologies she would get, but somehow, it still made her smile.

I should have worn my sexy negligee, she thought, to give them at least some sort of reward and maybe get one of them to trip, and then she started to laugh as she picked up the tray.

* * *

When she finally emerged from her long, bubbly, almost boiling hot bath, it was nearly noon. She found a simple, soft-green and peach-pink summer dress and twisted her hair into a loose bun, going in search of her friends. The dinner table wasn't ready and Pargan, a purring kitten on his shoulder, informed her with a kind smile that her guests had requested her presence on the terrace by the pool.

They had, as she noticed, decided to have a barbecue. Heero was turning his back to her as he almost frantically tried to keep the fire from going out, throwing words in Japanese that sounded awfully like curses, and Duo was hunched over a plastic bag on the table, giving a dark glare at a chair in a shadowed corner. After observation, she realized that Kuro was curled up comfortably under said chair and peacefully munching on a raw sausage.

Heero's white shirt was half unbuttoned, floating out of his tight, faded jeans. He often needed to bend over to pick up more coal. She politely wrenched her eyes away from the seat of his pants, only to notice that Duo was getting distracted from the dog by Heero's jeans-clad ass too. His red tanktop hung low off his shoulders. She could see a pink nipple, behind the wisps of hair falling over his collarbones. For a second she wondered, quite inappropriately, what they looked like naked.

Or naked and together in bed.

She decided to serve herself a big glass of ice-cold water.

"Oh, Relly. Hey."

She gave Duo a smile and a nod as she went to the table... freezing for a second as she noticed that Heero was half-turned toward her, and in the process of relaxing. She'd startled him. He was still holding the fire poker defensively, as if ready to lift it and brain the intruder. She bit her lip and gave him an apologetic look, but he was already turning away, apparently embarrassed by his lapse into soldier mindset.

"So. Slept well?"

"Very well, thank you. The next time one of you unplugs my alarm clock, I will be forced to retaliate."

Duo threw her a lazy smirk, but it was Heero's innocent look that made her laugh. It didn't suit him at all.

"What's so funny?" he asked, frowning faintly, his lips pursed into a not-quite-a-pout expression. She labeled the expression "sulky" and put it away in the mental folder reserved for them. Heero's expressions were always so subtle that most people were led to believe that he only had three: none, contemptuous and angry. When he smiled, it was either with his eyes only, or it was a smirk. Whenever she caught him making any other face, she was quick to commit it to memory.

"You are. Innocence looks as realistic on you as it does on Duo. You should try for puzzled annoyance next time," she advised with a smile as she went to the barbecue to check how close the meat was to being ready.

"Is that your professional advice, Vice-Minister?" Heero asked. His voice was dry, annoyed. His eyes were laughing. She had wanted to kiss him that badly before, but not since her adolescent hormones had calmed down. She gave him an innocent look, as much to show him how it was done than to hide the way her heart had jumped.

Duo burst out laughing. "I think we're outclassed here."

The sausages were half-burned and yet she had never tasted better before. It was the company, of course. Heero's thoughtful conversation and Duo's relevant anecdotes, Duo's irreverent jokes and Heero's quietly sarcastic comments, and the way they could have monopolized the conversation - leaving her to listen in and admire the way they shared and debated ideas, the way they mocked each other's little faults and opinions gently - and yet included her in effortlessly. She should have felt like a third wheel - her opinions on life were wildly different from theirs, and her sense of humor was certainly not as daring as Duo's or as dry as Heero's - but she didn't.

She didn't feel excluded - heck, sometimes she forgot that they were a couple and she was ... outside the couple. They were just three friends, having a rather rudimentary but very entertaining meal together, and she regretted that she had never gotten to know Duo that well before. Sure, if there hadn't been Heero to bring her closer to the energetic, disrespectful, decidedly not well-bred young man, she wouldn't have even tried, but she would have missed something. He was bright, had strong, well thought-out opinions, and yet tempered it all with a compassion she wouldn't have expected from someone with his history.

Of course, he could also be a rude brat.

"Eat more sausage, Relly-baby!" he was now saying, waving one under her nose. "We've got tons left," he added, pointing at the plate full of half-burned meat.

"I'm stuffed, Duo," she replied for the third time, trying to avoid the waving piece of sausage he was aiming at her mouth.

"You've barely eaten. Don't tell me you're on a diet, we've already talked about that."

Sighing and embarrassed, she accepted to be fed, opening her lips... only to blink as she saw Heero start to blush.

Duo blinked at her surprise, looked at Heero - who scowled, blushing even more hotly- and burst out laughing, so hard he had to lean back in his chair not to knock things over on the table. He managed to stop snickering for a few seconds, leered at Heero - "Mmm, open your mouth for my sausage, baby..." - and started laughing again.

Relena was mortified. How could she have not seen how suggestive it was to let a boy feed her such a phallic-looking food? She clenched her hands on her napkin, looking down. She regretted having pulled her hair back or she would have hidden behind it. If she hadn't been used to hurtful personal attacks from work, she would have gotten up and fled for her room, her embarrassment was that intense.

Duo was trying to control his snickers, but wasn't having much luck. He kept trying to comment, but luckily he was laughing so hard it wasn't intelligible.

Heero jumped on his feet suddenly, startling them both. He was still red and he looked annoyed, and that prompted Duo's guffaws to calm down a little.

"haha... What's- HEY!"

Relena blinked. Heero had just pulled Duo up and thrown him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"HEY! What the hell are you doing! Heero!"

Duo was struggling, hitting Heero's back and even his butt with his fists, but the Japanese man didn't even seem to notice. He stalked away, his back stiff with determination, his boyfriend slung over his shoulder like particularly squirmy baggage. Relena pushed herself up slowly, staring at them.

"Heero, it's not funny, what the hell- NOO!"

SPLASH!

Swimming pool, meet Duo Maxwell, she thought, caught between bewilderment and hysterical laughter. Duo resurfaced, coughing and spluttering.

"BASTARD!"

Heero came back to the table. She noticed with surprise that his cheeks were still red and that he wasn't looking at her.

"You didn't need to throw him in the pool," she ventured, glancing at him shyly.

"Yes I did," Heero grumped, still not looking up. "He was too busy laughing at me to notice it embarrassed you."

Relena blinked. Duo had been laughing at Heero, not at her? But why-oh. OH.

She thought she'd been blushing before, but that was nothing compared to the state of her cheeks now.

Heero was attacking his own sausages with vigor, cutting them up into tiny pieces before spearing them fiercely with his fork and chewing them as though they were leather. Relena looked down at her own plate and poked at a forgotten tomato slice.

They were so busy not looking up that neither of them noticed the mer-Duo monster before he wound his wet arms around Heero's neck and pulled him back. The chair toppled over and Duo dragged his struggling and kicking boyfriend to the pool, where he tried to throw him but, due to the wide puddle he'd left when he crawled out and dumped his shoes, ended up slipping and falling with him.

Relena choked on an incredulous laughter. They were wrestling underwater. She didn't know if that was play or not; she'd never seen them fight for real but then, she'd never seen then having an argument either. Vaguely worried, she stepped closer to the pool.

"Help!"

Duo burst out of the pool, climbing on the deck, his hair and tanktop dripping enough water to drown someone. Relena's shoes were splashed, but she didn't think of stepping back.

He looked up at her, wet bangs stuck to his cheekbones and eyelashes thickened with water, and for a second looked like a stranger. A mysterious stranger, born from the sea - and then Heero got a hold of his ankle and started to drag him back in, and Duo flopped on his back as he struggled and - and his thighs were around Heero's waist as Heero's hands caught the waistband of Duo's jeans to force him in the water and Heero's white, wet shirt had been pulled half-open and one of his shoulders was bare and they were wet, so wet - and Heero was laughing, as was Duo, and she wondered once again if that was what they looked like in bed.

"Rel! Help!" Duo called again, still laughing, as he playfully tried to squirm out of Heero's hold and cling to the deck. She hesitated a second, feeling dizzy and out of place. She had never participated in that sort of roughhousing ; her usual friends would never have been caught misbehaving so. She didn't know what she was supposed to do.

"Help how?" she asked cautiously, stepping closer to the edge but keeping a careful eye on them to stay away from their splashes.

They disappeared underwater again, and she stepped closer again - she knew it was a bad idea, but she couldn't help it. She needed to see what was going on.

Of course, she wasn't expecting an empty pair of jeans to jump out of the water and almost smack her in the face. She gave a little yelp of surprise and indignation - it was drenched with water and merrily dripping on her summer dress - and, still holding it, glared at the boys still mock-fighting loudly in the water.

It appeared that Heero favored white boxers.

It also appeared that, when wet, boxers had a tendency to cling to the skin. And turn sort of transparent.

"Nice view, eh princess!" Duo called merrily as he dived, swimming away from Heero. The Japanese boy growled and looked ready to follow, but then he froze and turned around. Their eyes met and their cheeks caught fire at the same time from realizing she had been watching his butt.

"Uhm- your jeans," she muttered, reaching out to give them to him.

He accepted them, blushing, looking away. She felt a funny tingle when his wet fingers brushed against her wrist.

They were, once again, so busy not-looking at each other that neither noticed Duo had left the pool until two wet arms encircled her waist. She yelped as a trail of cold water made its way along her neck and down her neckline. The back of her summer dress was sticking to her and Duo's skin and she shivered, struggling weakly.

"Duo, what are you doing!" she demanded, trying to squirm out of his hold without unbalancing them both, not wanting to fall on Heero.

He laughed, low and rough and vaguely threatening just beside her ear. "Guess." And with that, he lifted her up, moving her as if going to throw her in the pool. She shrieked, reaching out for Heero with one hand as she clung to Duo's arm with the other. The Japanese man hurried to climb out, but Duo just took off running around the pool with her under his arm like a package. She kept on shrieking, caught between laughing helplessly and protesting that treatment.

Finally, Heero had Duo cornered between the edge of the pool, a deckchair and the diving board. The American brought Relena up against his chest like a shield, his arms still tight around her waist, and she kicked and called for Heero between two fits of laughter. Heero and Duo were glaring at each other like two cowboys about to duel. Heero kept advancing slowly, Duo kept stepping back just as slowly.

"Duo, put me down now. You're dripping all over my dress," she commented as calmly as she could. The only reply she got was Duo stepping on the springboard. She was getting a bad feeling about the way the situation would end.

"Put her down, Maxwell," Heero threatened, fighting to keep the corner of his mouth from tilting up. "You've got nowhere to go."

"Lemme think about it- nope."

And suddenly they were falling back, Duo laughing maniacally, and she had the time for a good, loud scream before they hit the water.

She could hear/feel the surface break once again as Heero dived after them, and she struggled to escape, remorselessly stepping on Duo to push herself toward the air. Heero caught her arm, helping her to keep her head over the water as she coughed and - very unattractively - blew chlorinated water out of her nose.

"Duo! You little-" she growled, looking around for the traitor. Her so carefully washed and combed hair was a tangled mess, her nose burned, and her pretty summer dress- ack! She struggled to make Heero let go, to free at least a hand, and tugged desperately on her sleeve, caught under Heero's fingers. The large neckline was now going from the left of her neck to her right elbow, baring her right breast almost entirely. And her plain white bra was just as see-through as Heero's boxers.

"Stop that!" he ordered, scowling - but then he looked down to see what she was doing and she saw him stare and start blinking quickly at the plunging view he had of her breasts. Mortified, she pushed away from him and started to swim toward the edge of the pool.

She knew how to swim, but she'd never tried with shoes on, and the large folds of her dress were getting tangled around her legs. It was the only reason she accepted the hand Duo was holding out.

She sat up on the ledge at his side, wringing her hair and wiping her face, and then she gave him her best smile and pushed him headfirst in with both hands. When she left the pool's immediate vicinity for the gravel path back to the house, Heero was still laughing.

* * *

"See, he wants you to eat his love sausage," he told her later in the afternoon as they were resting on the side of the pool, her sunbathing in a deckchair, him having just come to rest his upper body on the tiled edge.

She turned her head toward him and glared, trying to ignore the way her cheeks burned. What was it with Duo and his obnoxious comments? He could smile as charmingly as he wanted, he was not off the hook yet and wouldn't be for a while if he kept on being so childishly annoying.

Heero was swimming laps, his previous ball game with his longhaired lover abandoned for a moment. Relena noticed that he was out of hearing. Of course, Duo was many things but not careless.

"Seriously, he was so thinking dirty thoughts 'bout you. Don't tell me you didn't notice."

"Maybe he was just embarrassed because your innuendos are about as subtle as a kick to the head?"

The American man snorted. "You can keep telling yourself he's not interested, Relly-baby. I'll just have to find other ways to convince you."

"Why don't you go swim laps too?" she asked in a tone that was appropriate if you knew that 'go swim laps' was Relena-code for 'go to hell'.

Chuckling, he obeyed.

She closed her eyes to let the sun warm her, but couldn't help hoping that Duo's next plan to prove to her that Heero was truly interested in her as a woman wouldn't leave them locked in a room together and naked.

She had to admit it; he had - well, he HAD looked down her dress a second too long. And blushed a lot, which she wasn't aware Heero usually did. And watched her as she left, chin held high... just to realize as she neared the house that the flimsy material would only have been more see-through if it had been white. As it was, pale green and soft pink cotton didn't hide very much wet.

But maybe- maybe that was just casual. He could find her cute or physically attractive without actually wanting to do anything about it. It didn't mean he thought her anything more than a friend.

But - but. Duo said Heero loved her. And she had accepted that; she just hadn't accepted that he loved her in a more than platonic way. Except he did watch when he could... but then men were like that. Maybe, she thought, just maybe she would have to check out how personal the physical attraction was, too.


End file.
